It’s been a whirlwind of a week for me. Losing my job came as such a shock. I suppose it shouldn’t have though. In the nine years I worked for that company there had been several rounds of downsizing. I went from wearing one hat to wearing three and doing it with a scowl. I remember the days when I would go home and rejoice in the fact that I was finally working a job that I didn’t hate. I would come home at night and not complain about anything and everything. But with all that downsizing, I had sort of figured that wearing three hats had given me lots of job security. I do so much around here! They can’t let me go, they won’t know what to do without me.

Yeah, I was wrong. For those who don’t know, I worked at a collection agency. My official title was Client Services Manager. It was my job to find clients, service clients, and be the liaison between collectors and clients. Then as time went on I also started doing data entry, posting all of the incoming payments, scanning, and pointing out everyone else’s mistakes. What was once a job I enjoyed just became a job I had. I couldn’t leave it though. Through a fluke blessing I was being generously paid for the job I was doing. (thank you boss’s wife who was active with the company during the time I got hired and promoted) I knew if I went anywhere else I would have to take a serious pay cut. Also, there were certain perks with my job. A week off at Christmas, $25 a month for health insurance, a short commute, a big private office. So I was stuck. I didn’t finish college so I knew I could not go elsewhere and make even close to what I was making.

I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. So when I was called into my manager’s office at 4:30 last Thursday and given the news that I no longer had a role at the company, I had to trust in that. Yes I cried and freaked out on the drive home. When Thom was unemployed it took forever for him to find work again. And when he did find a job, it was doing something he’d never done before. And in a completely different field than what he was used to. What would we do to pay the bills? How long would I be on unemployment? Would we make it?

Then a window opened. A client that I had worked closely with for the past seven years heard that I had “moved on to bigger and better things”. She knew better than that and by 10 am Friday my phone was ringing and she was getting the real story from me. She wanted to help. She knew of an office that was in need. And before I knew it I had slapped together a resume and sent it over to her. The weekend went by and I was busy focusing on other things, like cleaning out my garage. Monday morning rolls around and I get a call. That same day I go in for an interview and by four pm I had filled out paperwork and been asked to start the next day. It all happened so fast that it felt surreal. Yes I’ve taken a pay cut. Yes I’m starting out at the bottom. Yes it’s a little bit overwhelming being the new girl and knowing it will probably be a year before I have any vacation time. But you know what? I feel so good about it all. There’s room for growth at this company. It’s something similar, but different. It’s mere blocks from my house! The best part though? I NO LONGER WORK AT A COLLECTION AGENCY. Now when people ask me what I do for a living, I don’t have to cringe before I tell them. I don’t have to say “I work at a collection agency BUT I’M NOT A COLLECTOR.” And then try and scramble to tell them what I do knowing all the while all they really heard was collection agency. Collection agency = HORRIBLEAWFULNOGOODPEOPLE.

I must admit, I am a little worried still about how we’ll make it. But it’s not the kind of worry that keeps me up at night. It’s more like a distant thought in the back of my mind. Every few hours I think about something I didn’t enjoy about that job and I rejoice a little bit. I’ll never have to do _____ again. I’ll never have to deal with _____ again. Some of the people I worked with I am so happy to never have to see again. Yes I will miss working with and seeing my best friend every day. She was my person. The one I vented to. The one I laughed with. The one who knows me better than most people on this earth. I hate to think of how my getting laid off effects her day to day role there now. I hate that she no longer has me there to support her. To listen to her. To bring her sausage rolls and new music. She’s a strong woman though. She will take shit from no one and she will be just fine.

And I will be just fine. Thom and I will be just fine. There’s a new path in front of me, and I’m welcoming it with open arms.

Over the weekend I had a party at my house. Since it had been about nine years since we’d had a party in our house, I felt like we were long overdue. Of course now that I’m older I wanted less of a party and more of a structured evening with adult friends who are fun to be around. So that’s how Game Night came to be.

We played Cards Against Humanity which is just like Apples to Apples, but with a bit more pop culture and adult cards added to the mix. There was lots of food and booze and no one spilled anything on my almost white carpet.

I made caprese salad bites because I saw them on Pinterest and thought they would appeal to the masses. I was right.

I also made some stuff called Cowboy Caviar. Now I read a lot of different recipes for this and each one was a little bit different. In the end I made up my own based off of the foods that my husband loves. So here’s the recipe:

Cowboy Caviar

2 cans of black eyed peas, drained and rinsed

1 small red onion, diced

1 can corn, drained

1 can rotel, drained

1 jalapeno, seeded and diced

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Put all of that in a bowl with some salt and pepper and let it hang out while you make your dressing.

1/4 cup olive or vegetable oil

2 tbl lemon juice

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup vinegar (I used white wine vinegar)

Mix those four ingredients together and then bring them to a boil for a minute or so. Just long enough for the sugar to dissolve. Once it cools completely pour it over your salad and serve.

Call me an idiot, but I forgot to eat any food the whole time. I did not, however, forget to have drinks. The Adult Arnold Palmers were the cocktail of choice for the night. (half Simply Lemonade and half sweet tea vodka)

I made each guest a mixtape cd and we did a drawing for a door prize. But the best part of the night were my friends. We had a great time and lots of laughs. Even if it did get a little inappropriate at the end of the evening. Oh who am I kidding? Inappropriate is what we do best.

I wish I had taken more photos, but sometimes you just have to be in the moment instead of trying to capture the moment. They were great moments though and I can’t wait for the next Game Night.

It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since we jetted off to Las Vegas to get married. It’s also hard to believe that it took us seven years to get to that point. I’ve now spent a third of my life with you.

Sometimes we are silly.

Sometimes we are sweet.

Sometimes we’re just plain weird.

But usually we’re just us.

I love you baby. Happy Anniversary.

You are my baby sister. You are my best friend. You are a fierce recommender. You make me laugh. You make me cry. You make me want to be a better person.

We didn’t always get along. We still bicker and fight and chase each other around. We still don’t see eye to eye on everything.

You have the better hair and the bigger savings account. You have more patience and understanding.

You’re generous and thoughtful and you make everyone better for having known you.

Happy Birthday Kiddo. Thanks for being born.

And I can’t believe that of the 100+ photos Thom took, there wasn’t a single one of us together.

It’s hard to believe that my sweet baby girl* is now sixteen. I remember the day she was born. I was seventeen years old and a senior in high school. I was in Stillwater at a singing competition of some sort. I was hoping she would arrive as a Matthew, but instead she arrived as a Laura. And thank goodness she did! I can’t imagine my life without her.

Happy Sweet 16 girl. (whose birthday was actually last Monday, but since we just had your party over the weekend, I’m posting this now)

*By sweet baby girl, I don’t mean she actually belongs to me. She’s my cousin, lest you think I was knocked up in high school.

My weekend, in photos (and video)

It was a perfect weekend.

Last night I helped throw my sister a surprise 30th birthday celebration at her favorite restaurant. Her best friends really stepped up to the plate and made awesome fans with her face on them. On the backs they wrote “I’m a fan of Dawn”. It was kind of awesome.

She was totally surprised and it was a really fun evening. I love my sister.

You can view the entire set of photos here.

And you can read an even better post about this over at her BFF’s blog.